The Adventure Fox

When it comes to owning an RV, it’s not a matter of if something will break but when. The more you travel, and the more miles you put on your rig, the more damage occurs. If you’re traveling with your rig on short trips whenever the season’s best for camping, you won’t deal with too many repairs. However, if you’re traveling full time or longer than a few weeks, you will be dealing with a constant stream of repairs.

Not all the repairs you’ll deal with be huge, expensive projects. Some times it’s as simple as finding where loose screws belong and finding the right screwdriver for the job. The big jobs can be scary and expensive, but the more you learn to do on your own, the more confidence you’ll have to take on bigger projects. There will be times in which you’ll need to have repairs done by a professional, but for the most part, you’re capable of doing most repairs especially with the internet as a resource.

Sometimes, you’ll encounter an issue that comes at the most inconvenient of times and when you’re unsure of how to deal with the problem, it can cause you to panic. It’s important, to take things in stride when a new challenge arises, and think critically on how to solve the issue even if you feel over whelmed or fearful. I’ve had my fair share of panic problem solving when a problem has come up, and things tend to go a lot smoother when you remain calm and stay focused.

About a month ago I was headed to the site I’d be at for the next two weeks, and I was going to be arriving extremely late. When I stopped at gas station in a dead zone an hour out, I attempted to open the door to my RV door while filling up and the key broke off inside the door while it remained locked. I immediately started thinking about all the reasons why this was tragic. I didn’t have service to make a call, and I still had an hour drive to my site while having no access to the inside of my rig. This gave me time to devise a way to get into my locked RV without damaging it.

Since I was in an area where I wouldn’t be able to order a replacement door handle, I needed to find a way to keep the door handle in use until I could find a replacement. I found a creative way to enter my camper without destroying the handle or breaking any windows. Since part of the key was stuck into the door’s lock, I was unable to unlock it from the inside. I found the right screwdriver and started taking apart the doorhandle/lock from the inside. Once I removed the inner part of the handle, I was able to manually move the locking mechanism to the unlock position. After I reassembled the handle/lock I was able to still use the door handle to open and close the door, but without the ability to lock it.

Luckily I was headed to an RV park where I would be safe without a locking door until I was able to order a replacement part. It was critical that I had a working door handle in the mean time which I achieved. I ended up ordering a replacement door handle/lock from Amazon. It was a pretty standard, universal option that cost $22.49. It ended up working well for my purposes, but it did take a little finagling to get it to fit appropriately.

To do the door/lock replacement it took me about 30 minutes. It could take a seasoned repairmen 10-15 minutes. However, I’m more of a DIYer and not a professional. I started by removing the old handle and the metal piece of the door handle that lays flush with the inside the door. The metal piece that is in the inside of the door that receives the door I ended up not replacing because the new piece didn’t lay as flush. When trying to insert the new handle I did have some issues with it not fitting quite right. I ended up making some indentations into the styrofoam that makes up the inner door so that the inside mechanisms would fit better.

When putting the door handle into it’s slot I made sure to keep it in it’s unlocked position while holding the door handle in the open position so it could slide into place easier. Then from there, I just took my time making sure the pieces lined up and sat correctly in the door and screwed the pieces together. The piece from the outside didn’t want to set flush with the door so I screwed the pieces together tighter to make a tight enclosure. This worked, but it did cause some minor indentations on the inside of the door where the handle was putting too much pressure on the inner door material.

So all in all, this repair ended up costing a little less than $25, and a solid 30 minutes to complete. Trying to find a way into my locked RV was by far the most stressful part of this whole endeavor, especially since I had 2 weeks of groceries inside that needed a fuel source to run the fridge once I arrived to my destination after 5+ hours of driving. As a solo traveling female, I nearly lost my logic to fear when I saw that key break off. Everything from my food spoiling, where I’d sleep, if I would be safe, how I would fix this and still work the next day flooded my mind.

Once again though, I found a solution, and a way to fix the problem. Since I found a temporary solution I saved myself the costs or getting emergency locksmith services, and paying high markup prices on a replacement part at an RV shop. So, if this ever happens to you, take some time to think about solving the issue before thinking you can’t fix the problem yourself. Just remember how capable you are, and keep exploring this beautiful world.